OC Cravings: Vietnamase Banh Uot
Every time I go home to Orange County, I always get instant cravings for Vietnamese food. Sometimes I don’t know what those cravings are – that is until I get to my house where my aunt and uncle now live.
Yesterday, to my surprise, when I got home my aunt was about to make Vietnamese Banh Uot, opaque rice flour rolls eaten with cha lua – a Vietnamese style ham, also known as fancy pork – along with bean sprouts, cucumber and caramelized onions with a little drizzle of spicy fish sauce.
I’ve never ever eaten this dish homemade before and was so excited to watch my aunt prepare the flour rolls on the stove and serve them fresh and warm.
Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll be following any type of diet this weekend – and I’m really not at all concerned at the very least! And that makes me super happy 
What was your last food craving you had that you didn’t think you wanted to eat until it was sitting right there in front of you? For me, I’m sure I’ll run into a few more before the weekend is over.
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On September 13th, 2008 Lorien said:
Hi Lilan,
This dish looks very interesting, I am always on the lookout to try new recipes, I’ll have to look into this one.
I like the new website setup.
Last night we had some home-fried potatoes (started with frozen and then added some spices and fresh herbs), they really hit the spot more than I expected them to. I’ve been dieting but I totally agree how much nicer it is not to be!
On September 13th, 2008 Marisol said:
That looks soooo yummy!
On September 14th, 2008 karrie said:
This dish looks great!
Lilan, have you thought about maybe putting recipes in this section?
I love trying new recipes.
On September 14th, 2008 Lea said:
I love Vietnamese food, so tasty but not greasy. There’s one up the road we love to vist called Gingergrass, good prices too! I like the soup dishes =)
On September 14th, 2008 Lilan said:
Hi Lorien,
Home fries sounds so yummy! I’d love to have some for dinner this week with a nice steak maybe but I think this is the week I start the food diary back up and really get serious about my extra pounds – eep!
Hope you’re having a great weekend – is the weather in the Bay nice?
On September 14th, 2008 Lilan said:
Hi karrie,
I’m definitely going to add recipes to this section when I have them. These rice flour rolls are my aunt’s recipe and you know how the old school ladies cook – without recipes!
If I can dig one up, I’ll definitely post them.
Do you have any favorite recipes you love to eat?
On September 14th, 2008 Lilan said:
Hi Lea,
My favorite thing about Vietnamese food is that it’s wonderfully delicious and pretty healthy too. It’s probably my favorite food to eat. Do you have a favorite cuisine?
I wish Chinese food weren’t so greasy and heavy, I might indulge in that more often
On September 15th, 2008 Lorien said:
Hi Lilan,
You’re probably back by now, but the weather was beautiful on Saturday. Honestly I can’t say for today, I was inside all day! It was a nice day, though; I made a big pot of black bean soup with pureed red peppers in it, yum!
I agree with Karrie, recipes would be nice, but I’m guessing that would be extra work for you. The link to Chowhound was nice, though; it looks like there might be a recipe there or at least a link to one. If you have a chance to post recipes, that would be be fun too!
On September 15th, 2008 Lilan said:
Hi Lorien,
Aww I’m sorry to have missed the gorgeous weather over the weekend but I definitely can’t complain about So Cal sunshine either – we grilled all afternoon at my cousin’s house and it was amazing!
For sure I will post recipes when I can in this section. You bet I want to learn how to make Banh Uot on my own too!
By the way, do you have any favorite food sites you like to check out for recipes?
On September 17th, 2008 Lorien said:
Hi Lilan,
Glad to hear you had gorgeous weather in So Cal too!
My favorite site for recipes has been epicurious; they have a great advanced search at http://www.epicurious.com/recipesmenus/advancedsearch where you can search though over a decade’s worth of recipes from Gourmet and Bon Appetit magazine, and then save them to a recipe box on the website. People also rate the recipes and post comments after making them, which I find very helpful. I am definitely ready to find out about some new recipes sites, though, if anyone else has any suggestions!